Escape

 February 2, 2022

The early James Bond franchise were masters of melodrama. James is trapped seemingly with no way of escape, but suddenly manages an almost miraculous deliverance through one of the clever devices “M” has produced, or through some minuscule flaw in his opponent’s plan. What looked like certain gruesome death suddenly is transformed into glorious salvation. The Indiana Jones franchise repeatedly used that same plot to ensure another movie would be made.

God has his own version of miraculous escape. It’s found in 1 Corinthians 10:13.

“No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.”

There is a secret about this way of escape that eludes many: it is always present even before the temptation. It isn’t a hidden passageway that only is discoverable at the last minute; it’s always within our grasp, if we will only reach for it. 

Our usual problem is our failure to prepare for the test when we have the opportunity. Like the professor who hands out the syllabus at the beginning of the semester with test dates clearly marked, God has made our success available from the start. But we get lazy, hoping to cram at the last minute, only to discover that there are no shortcuts in life.

The time to prepare for the storm is before it hits. When the wind is whipping the snow into three-foot drifts whiteout conditions is not the time to contemplate putting snow tires on the car. The way of escape is found before the trial, not during it. It comes in the form of consistent prayer and study of Scripture, in the discipline of worship and tithing, in Holy Communion and deliberate witness.

Our way of escape is found in the way we invest our time, energy, and attention prior to the trial. Waiting till we are in it is a recipe for disaster, but the promise of God is sure; he is faithful, and doesn’t give us more than we can handle it…IF we prepare for the test by taking the way of escape before we need it. When it comes to escape, James Bond and Indiana Jones are strictly amateurs. God’s people are the real escape artists!